Race Day

Woke up at 4 to eat and have some coffee.  T1 opened at 5 and since everything was in place from yesterday all I needed to do was put air in the tires and make sure everything was in place.  Stayed at the Galt which was 10 min walk from T1.  Since the swim is a time trial start, people (athletes and families) we already forming a line at that by the time I got there was half a mile long.  Frustrating at times sitting in the dark but with the upcoming day it was nice to get some forced relaxation.  I would advise getting in line and then going to the bathroom as people were in sleeping bags, blankets and had tons of family waiting with them. 

The Start

The pros went off at 6:50 and the long walk to the start began.  We were moving forward slowly and trying to get dressed, stretched and hydrated at the same time.  The time trial start doesn’t allow you to warm up and it tough to get rid of some nervous energy.  I finally got to the start and they had two long lines with two starting piers.  As I got in it was actually refreshing.  The time didn’t start till your chip passed so you could adjust the goggles and make sure you were ready on your own time.  In to the water, very pleasant and plenty of room.  The first part is through narrow channel and at time there was some floating debris but nothing you couldn’t navigate.  There didn’t seem to be too much current and based on the start not too crowded.  The narrow start actually made it easier to spot than true open water. 

At the turn the sun was just coming over the horizon.  I keep thinking that I would see that all day.  The 280 degree turn is a little tricky in that you see the swimmers coming directly at you.  After the turn is when you start the long, straight downstream.  It never feels like down current until you get to the last half mile or so.  The river is so wide at that point that you really are by yourself.   My neck began hurting from my speed suit about half way…really bothered me the remainder of the swim.  Maybe next year ill learn to breathe on both sides although was in a nice 4 stroke/2 stroke breathing and actually felt pretty strong.  Maybe got off course 2/3 times.  Going under the bridges is really a cool feeling, like I shouldn’t be swimming in this shipping channel.  Great support helping out of the water.

Swim result: 1:15:37 (74 M30-34., 600 overall) 1:58 pace

Transition 1

I ran up the shoot and someone called my number out and grabbed my bike gear bag and escorted me to the changing tent.  The volunteer led me to a chair and poured my gear out as I pealed off my suit/googles he packed them away for me.  Shoes on bike and ran through feeling like a rock star.

Time: 0:04:03

Bike

The first 12 miles of the bike are pan flat.  I tired to keep everything very easy and eat some solid food at about 20 min in.  As soon as you leave the view of the river you start up a big hill that last about 3 min.  The course was well marked and the traffic after the initial flat section is non-existent.  Coming form NY, I was amazed how great the roads were.  Every part of the course the roads were in great rolling condition.  Not a ton of spectators for the first part but as you get to the first out and back the country-side is picturesque with horse farms and rolling hills. 

The first out and back is beautiful but a tiny road.  At that point there were plenty of people in front of me and it made you really pay attention around the curves.  Luckily the out and back is short with an aid station at the turn around so you can focus on the road rather than the others riders.

The first loop takes you through LaGrange were for a brief mile the streets are lined with spectators and you feel great.  Unfortunately, it is on a slight downhill so trying to spot family and friends can be tough but it is easy for them to get in and out of.  Great aid support at every station with tons of nutrition.  The only real tricky part on the bike comes right after a quick downhill and huge 180 degree turn to a straight uphill.  The hill isn’t huge but starting off basically at zero mph I got into the small chain ring on the downhill.  If you forget where the uphill starts, look for the bikes on the side road with people struggling with slipped chains.  Just at the turn back on to 42, there is a gas station that has a smoker grill out front that smells wonderful. There was a small, yet vocal, crowd hanging here. Next time I do this race I would have friends hang out here.

The Starting the second loop sucks for about 10 min as you readjust your brain to seeing the exact same road.  When I came through I was lapping athletes starting their first and it can get fairly crowded.  Although is does give you something to focus on. 

Minus the first and last 12 miles the bike course is never flat.  Never huge uphill or down but always rolling.  The course makes you think for the entire 112 miles.  Can be tough if you’re struggling but I was basing my nutrition on y attention span.  Every time I was fading I would eat…about every 30 min so it worked perfectly to my strategy.

Nutritionally - My goal was 350 calories an hour while on the bike, mostly from CarboPro. I had a 1100 cal drink made and had two cliff bars (225 K each) and two gels (90 K each). The bars went down like mud but after my stomach agreed with everything I put in it.

Bike result: 5:35:22 294 overall 50 M30-34 20.04 MPH

Transition 2

Got out of the shoes and gave my bike to a volunteer…this rocks.  Had a volunteer call out my number and another volunteer meet me in the tent with my run gear.  Took some lip Vaseline, blister tape for my toes and was out.  By this time the change tent had every male change from swim-run and a good deal run-bike before me and smelled like death.

Time 5:40

Run

My first big mistake was taking a full 4 bottle fuel belt for the run.  I had two carbopro bottles (300K) and two waters.  I have raced with this in the past and been fine but today was a different story.  At mile 1 I was already annoyed with the weight.  The first two miles are hot…right in the city and over the bridge.  I was feeling good it just felt like the beginning of the unknown. 

Was going along at a good clip and doing a good job of zoning out.  The run course is super easy and spectator friendly.  If you like running long flats on the asphalt this course is for you.

At mile 3, I ditched the fuel belt and ran with one carbo solutions.  Felt like a million bucks losing that weight.  I was a bit nervous with taking calories from the aid stations as I ever trained and hardly drink Gatorade or Coke.  Every mile was a roll of the dice for the stomach but seemed to work.  Had a mild cramp during the first 5 but went away.

At the special needs I had two more carbopro solutions and only took one.  This process I was a bit nervous about but the volunteers had it down. 

The worst, kick you in the teeth, part comes at mile 14 when you get within 100 yards of the finish line.  Luckily there were too many people crossing at that point so the fan fare was at a minimum.  Literally takes all the joy out of you as you run out again for the remaining 13 miles.

Aid stations every mile which, for me, meant walking every mile.  Most I needed too but not all.  The last third I walked because I knew I could.  When I was running I felt strong and my pace was good (8:45ish).  The problem as with all IM, I suspect is that my walking got longer and longer.

The greatest feeling of the day was avoiding the traffic to get to the left as most people were starting their second run loop.  I had a volunteer look directly at me and say “finishing?” and was overjoyed.  The finishers chute was extra long and completely amazing.  Tons of people, music and cheers.  Finishing at Fourth Street live is unique and makes you feel like a rock star.

Run result: 4:03:20 460 overall 72 M30-34 (9:17 pace)

Overall result: 11:04:02 (318/2435) 52 M30-34

You ARE an Ironman!

Background

After a successful performance at Rhode Island ½ IM, I’d completely unnecessarily managed to get injured. The injury can best be described as ‘hip-flexor / core damage’ which manifested itself as an inability to ride without blowing up. In particular (and this is relevant), it was pretty much instant-death on the bike as soon as I came close to my LTHR (170) or LTP (330W). In the weeks that followed, I really struggled with training – not helped with the twin derailers of having met my season’s performance goals and being utterly bored with getting up at 5am each morning to train. I’d muscled my way through the humidity of Timberman and having vowed that was the last race of the year, promptly signed up for the Southampton Olympic.

Training

The 3 weeks between Timberman and Southampton were hardly conducive to training as I was both working hard and travelling quite a bit. I only had the opportunity to do a few workouts per week which were generally focused on shorter intervals (100s in the pool, 5 min bike intervals, hill repeats for running).While I felt that my mid season riding power was starting to come back, my HR was 5-8 clicks higher. Even riding the day before the race, I’d noted that my HR was quite a bit higher than usual. At least I was fully rested!

The Course

Swim is a rectangular anti-clockwise loop parallel to the shore. Generally the times run a little slow and in some years it can resemble swimming in a washing machine (not that I’ve ever done that…). The bike course is quite technical for the first 12 miles: twisty-turny-up-and-down with few opportunities to get into a rhythm. There are some very tight bends, not helped by the wet roads. The last 13 miles is flatter and frequently has cross winds. Given the sheer number of people on the bike course, it is quite dangerous on the first half of the bike course so you generally want to be in one of the earlier waves. The run course is easy – flat and shaded in sections.

The Plan

The plan, for the bike at least, was to aim at 300W with an HR of 164. For the first 5-10 minutes, I’d try to keep the HR to the low 150s, and let it drift up from there.  From a power perspective this is the middle of the range for an Olympic distance race, based on an LTW of 330W. For the run, the aim was to go at it hard and keep going. Whilst this all seemed reasonable, given the lack of training in recent weeks, I had no idea what I’d be able to do – especially since I hadn’t run off the bike since Timberman. The weather was at least going to be cooperative – cool, overcast, and a bit breezy.

The Race

The swim was pretty straightforward. There was a bit of chop, just enough to keep it interesting. The turn-around buoy was impossible to sight – good job that I decided not to enter the elite division. My swim time (28mins) was a couple of minutes slower than I would have liked, but since the course runs a little long, I wasn’t too fussed. My HR was really high coming out of transition and for the first few miles on the bike – into the high 160s. I made a few efforts to get it down to the target range, but with little success. I didn’t feel like I was straining too much, so I just decided it was ‘one of those days with a high HR and got on with the job, focusing on the power meter. The roads were damp and a little treacherous, and with the exception of being crashed into in the lane coming back into transition, managed to stay out of trouble. For the ride, I managed 295W and 165bpm – so pretty close to plan. Bike time was 1:02, and the 4^th fastest in the entire field. Starting the run, I was in 40^th position, but since I was in wave 4 (and thus 12 minutes back), I figured that I must be in the top 20 or so. I was fortunate that I had someone to run with (who was half my age!) for the first couple of miles who seem to have exactly the same speed and run cadence as me, so I got into a great rhythm. As I said earlier, the run course is quite easy, so all of a sudden the race was over and I’d put in a PB (by 2 minutes) for an Olympic 10K of 41:30 (hey – I’m a biker, not a runner!). This was only a minute or so slower than what I thought I’d ever be able to do. Overall I was 18^th out of 880 and 6^th in my age group.

TW

                                                      

Timberman Race Report 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Ellacoya State Park in Gilford, NH

Despite a delayed start to the race and a snapped goggle strap at the swim start, Timberman was a great race all around and an amazing experience as my first 70.3.  I am very pleased with my experience overall and most grateful to Coach Cliff for guiding me through it!

The weather the 2 days prior to the race were wet and miserable in NH.  Pouring rain and wet roads made it challenging to get excited for the race and of course added to the pre-existing nerves!  The day before the race, Lake Winnipesaukee was choppy and made for an interesting warm up swim.  Nontheless, the weather was certainly on our side on race morning when the clouds parted, the sun came out and stayed with us for most of the day.  As the day wore on, the heat and humidity increased and my run split reflected this.  Steady pacing and a solid nutrition plan made all the difference and got me to the finish line feeling great! 

Here are a few highlights and course commentaries from each leg of the race:

SWIM:
• Delayed race start and a dash to make my wave on time made a slightly hurried start to the race!  It was hard to hear the race announcers as they called in each wave but the hot pink caps in the water were hard to miss!
• Made it into the water with 90 seconds to go and felt a SNAP!  Uh oh…. A kind fellow racer helped tie my goggles and I quickly put my cap over them and started the swim.
• Settled into a rhythm and was able to maintain it for most of the swim.  I was most proud of this leg of the race given that swimming has been my challenge.  I guess spending most of the winter in the pool and those 11,000 weekly yardage workouts from Coach Cliff really made a difference!
• Out of the water in apprx 39 minutes which I was pleased with!  Loved those wetsuit strippers…..

BIKE:
• A challenging, rolling out and back course with a stretch of flat from apprx miles 20-35.  Heavily manned with aid stations that made all the difference!
• It was a struggle to stay conservative on the bike early on as the adrenaline was flowing and it was tough to let other fellow racers pass me when all I wanted to do was speed up and I knew I could!
• This turned out to be the best race strategy for me as on mile 10, there was a tough climb and it did not flatten out until mile 20.
• Lost a nutrition bottle as it launched out of the cage on rough road descent (the side of the road was filled with other water bottles!)  Had to get off the bike and go back and pick it up (could not risk that given the amount of time Coach Cliff and I spent on nutrition strategy!!)
• Eduralytes were very important for this race and I believe set me up well for the run off the bike.  Whenever I was in doubt, I took an eduralyte!!
• The bike course is full of aid stations with great volunteers who passed out Gatorade endurance and water bottles which was great given the heat out on the course. 
• A slight head wind made for a slightly challenging trip back to Ellacoya Park, where transition was set up.
• The last 15 miles proved to be tougher than I had planned for and I was very happy to make the left turn back into T2.
• Rolled into T2 a little later than I anticipated but I felt in great shape for the run which was the goal.

RUN:
• Legs felt surprisingly good off the bike which was a great way to start the final miles of this race.
• Struggled to find a sustainable pace given the heat on the course and it seemed that most other runners struggled with the same. 
• 2 loops of an apprx 6 mile out and back made it easy to know exactly how far you’d gone (or how much you had left!)
• Course full of aid stations and neighborhood volunteers who passed out pretzels, gu’s, enduralytes, Gatorade and water sponges (LOVED the sponges!!)
• I felt great on the first loop and was looking to pick up the pace on loop 2.  This proved difficult with the heat and humidity on the rise.  I was determined to finish strong so stuck to a steady sustainable pace.
• Finished feeling tired but great and was pleasantly surprised to see Chrissie Wellington passing out finisher medals at the finish line!
• Have already started thinking about next year’s race strategy! 

THANK YOU Coach Cliff for your guidance and support!!  I can’t wait to do this race again!!

It's not about the race!!

After two days of head scratching I have finally decided that my short Lake Placid race report will be less conventional than those that I have read here before. No one is going to get too excited about my splits, and my top race tips are not going to alter the race strategy of any of Tri-Stars readers. I'm a little over a year in to this sport and there are many more qualified authors out there who can dispense advice ahead of me, backed up by impressive results to add weight to their opinions. That said, some of you pros may have lost sight of the many and varied challenges that face a virgin triathlete, so here goes with my top six triathlon tips, all learned the hard way;

 *   Your wetsuit zip goes at the back

 *   Pump the tyres up and the bike goes faster

 *   If someone overtakes you on a ladies mountain bike don't despair...you can still catch them on the downhill bit...maybe

 *   Two running shoes work better than one

 *   Exiting the bike transition via the entrance is only exciting for a millisecond...then it gets very embarrassing (and painful)

 *   Seeing the age on the back of peoples legs was a rule invented by really old, fit people. Carry a permanent marker and secretly double your age to really depress other athletes

As far as Lake Placid goes, it was a blast. I can actually hold my head high and say I enjoyed almost every moment. Even seeing the winner sprint to the finish line as I got off my bike didn't knock me off my stride. Great people, great town, great race...end of story. However, I do want to briefly say a little bit about my broader experience of the Ironman, because for me it really is not about the race. Again, on this topic I think I am probably reaching out to those people who are new to the sport and not to those veterans amongst you who have an entire wardrobe full of 'finishers' t-shirts and cheaply made medals hanging on the back of a door, but bear with me if you will...

I was enticed (or duped?!) in to doing an Ironman a little over a year ago, partially by my coach but more importantly by the quiet voice inside my head which just wouldn't shut up once it got hold of the ridiculous idea. My first race was in Florida back in October '08, and now with Lake Placid finished I'm two races in to what will probably be a short Ironman career. I have always tried to stay on the right side of fitness, but I would be a liar if I said that I was in great shape when this crazy journey began. I was 36, spent much of my time behind a computer or in an airport waiting lounge, and had hung on to the memory of a sport filled youth and a relatively fit body for far too long. I am never going to win a race...never have, never will (I do dream about the day that everyone apart from me takes a wrong turning, but that probably wouldn't count?). The training and the races have entered almost every part of my life, but what has struck me in the last two weeks is the real effect that Ironman has had on those around me. I had a very loyal team of ten close friends and family travel to Lake Placid with me, and without exception they all seemed profoundly moved by the whole event. I'm not saying that any of them will be lining up on the start line next year, but there is a new sense of optimism and adventure amongst all of us that has taken life in to a new gear. How that materializes itself remains to be seen, but I know there are more adventures around the corner, and the Ironman lit the touch paper.

Ironman is beyond comprehension for most people, and this last race really brought that home to me. Sure, in a town like Lake Placid on race weekend you could be fooled in to thinking that most normal people knock off a 50 mile bike ride before breakfast and then run 15 miles in their lunch hour prior to wrestling a bear before dinner, but the reality is of course very different. Speak to the guy in the deli when you get home and tell him what you did at the weekend and he will look at you like you have just stepped off an alien spaceship. Completing the Ironman has given me an enormous sense of accomplishment, and with my mid-life crisis supposedly looming I feel healthier and happier than I have done in years. I have absolutely no desire to buy a sports car or an electric guitar. My waist is nearly four inches smaller than it was a year ago, and I am discovering muscles in my legs that I never knew existed. I really do feel ten years younger than I am and that is beyond fantastic. Whilst I cannot credit my new hobby with all of this, it has been a major factor and for that I am very grateful. I am wholly addicted to the structure and discipline of training, to my newly improved diet, and to the buzz of race day. I will never become a fanatic - my eyes still glaze over when discussions turn to lactate thresholds and power meters, and I still don't know what all the buttons do on my heart rate monitor. I've never really felt comfortable in spandex and I don't think I ever will, but I do know how to get round the Ironman in one piece, and that's good enough for me, at least for now.

My final tip then would be this, and I think it applies to those at the front of the field as it does to those in the middle or at the back. Grab some of your closest friends and take them along to your next race (bring the guy from the deli as well). If they don't want to join you then just let them soak it all in and enjoy a day out cheering you on. The results might just take you by surprise!

                                                                                            
For those interested. I did my third,  NYC triathlon this weekend 1.5 km swim, 40 km ride, 10 km run.

Below are my results. I was very happy with result. Much appreciation to Cliff who coached me from 3h:18mins (2008) to 2h:25mins (this year) and Martha, Abuela, Adrian, Alex and Andre who have allowed me / supported me to put in the 10-15 hours a week of training !!! (I managed to drop
25 lbs in the process over the year).

Swim 17:51 Pace (per 100 mrs) 1:04 (very strong current)

T1 5:01

Ride 1:10:04...Pace (miles per hour) 21.3

T2 1:53

Run 51:00....Pace (min per mile) 8:13

Total 2:25:47